


A Night Out on the Town

by AVernedi



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - College/University, Clubbing, Getting Together, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, M/M, Protectiveness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:48:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28234935
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AVernedi/pseuds/AVernedi
Summary: "Futakuchi!" Moniwa called. Kenji perked back up. Moniwa had turned, probably sitting on his knees to peek over the back of the seat he shared with Kamasaki. He held up the crumpled paper so Kenji could see it and gave Kenji an enthusiastic nod. "Great idea! I'll put it in the group chat!"Kenji made the A-ok sign at him. Their captain was so enthusiastic, it was adorable.Kamasaki was still eyeing him with suspicion. Kenji schooled his face into the most innocent one he could muster and blinked at him. If anyone were to call it"batting his eyelashes"well, they were just wrong weren't they?Kamasaki scowled and turned back around. Kenji tucked his hands behind his head and resettled himself in his seat luxuriously.I love the smell of victory in the evenings.In light of a tournament win, the men's volleyball team of Date Technological University has an eventful night on the town. Sakunami sees a metal band live, someone is kissed with tongue, and Futakuchi Kenji may or may not be a good person.
Relationships: Aone Takanobu & Futakuchi Kenji, Futakuchi Kenji & Sakunami Kousuke, Futakuchi Kenji/Kamasaki Yasushi
Comments: 5
Kudos: 16





	A Night Out on the Town

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is not Christmas-themed but it IS my present to myself. Merry Christmas Dre, I love you baby.  
> Note 1: This is a college AU in the sense that all the schools from the show have just been turned into universities and all the characters aged up accordingly.  
> Note 2: I drew some quick sketches of a few of the characters [night-out looks. ](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/499789810215682059/789350219879677992/YQQvMEnJ.png) From left to right: Sakunami, Kamasaki, Futakuchi, and Aone.

They won the tournament. It was a friendly competition, one that didn't affect their season standing but still. They'd fucking _won._ They'd won and Futakuchi Kenji was _feeling himself._ Why shouldn't he be? He'd gotten the winning point, a beautiful stuff-block that had richocheted off his and then Takanobu's outstretched arms, blowing the final spike of Aoba Johsai's #4 back in his face. It had been a beautiful team effort. Angels were probably weeping at it. And when Kenji had hummed " _bow down bitches, bow down bitches_ ," to himself in a steady monotone in the locker rooms after, he had caught Takanobu nodding along.

And now they were on the bus, heading back to campus like the conquering heroes they were. The first years were singing something loud and raucous in the back rows. Near the middle, Kenji had helped himself to two whole seats, back pressed against the window, leg extended towards where Takanobu sat across the aisle. 

"Hey. Takano." He pronounced it "Ta-KAno," because it was the most flippant way he could come up with to exercise the privilege of calling his best friend by his name. (Why Kenji felt the need to be flippant about this was not something he planned on thinking too hard about.) "We should do something," he continued. "Reward ourselves, you know? For being the best players on the team and all."

Takano regarded him with his usual lack of blinking. Then he nodded once; he was in. Kenji grinned.

"Let's see..." He tilted his head back against the window, ignoring the way the movement of the bus made it rattle against his skull. He drummed his finger against the fabric-lined back of the seat. _Let's see..._

His mind ran through several possibilities, realistic and unrealistic. A few involved confetti cannons. He'd seen pictures of professional athletes making snow angels in the confetti that came raining down when they'd won the cup. The idea of living that out had become one of his most cherished non-sexual fantasies. At least two other possibilities involved a locker room, but those were _not_ in the non-sexual category. He tucked those away to mull over later, and focused on the realistic ideas for now. 

Takano had been watching him this entire time, waiting him out. Kenji smirked. "You got a pen?" 

In answer, Takano reached for his sports bag and hauled it closer. Drawing the zipper with one huge hand, he meticulously began going through its pockets. While he did that, Kenji pulled something out of the pocket of his tracksuit: the program for today's matchups. The cover, he decided, was best to write on. It had minimal text, mostly the Date Technological University logo. They had hosted the tournament in the municipal stadium, to keep the school's gym free for their other sports teams. He folded the page opposite to the pamphlet binding and prepared to tear it off. 

Takano's hand appeared in his field of vision, offering a green permanent marker. "Thanks," Kenji told him. Uncapping it with his teeth, he scrawled, " _We should all go out to celebrate B)"_ onto his torn piece of paper before wadding it up into a ball, one-handed. Giving Tanako back his pen, he held the ball near his face, taking aim. 

This idea, he decided, was elegant in its simplicity. For the team, it involved a chance to bond, to reward themselves. And for himself...

(He lined up his shot and threw. The paper ball lobbed in a long perfect arc towards where the fourth-years sat at the front of the bus. It hit Kamasaki squarely in the back of the head.)

...attention.

"Hey!" Kamasaki whipped around. "What the hell?"

Kenji fluttered his fingers at him, deliberately obnoxious. "Whoops! Sorry Kamasaki-san, could you give that to Moniwa-san? Thank you so much." He was rewarded for his pains when Kamasaki continued to give him suspicious looks, even as he retrieved the paper and handed it to Moniwa. 

He was also acutely aware of Takano looking at him. "Shut up," he muttered. 

Takano flattened his facial expression even further. _I wasn't going to say anything._

Kenji glared. _Of course you weren't._

"Futakuchi!" Moniwa called. Kenji perked back up. Moniwa had turned, probably sitting on his knees to peek over the back of the seat he shared with Kamasaki. He held up the crumpled paper so Kenji could see it and gave Kenji an enthusiastic nod. "I'll put it in the group chat!"

Kenji made the A-ok sign at him. Their captain was so enthusiastic, it was adorable. 

Kamasaki was still eyeing him with suspicion. Kenji schooled his face into the most innocent one he could muster and blinked at him. If anyone were to call it " _batting his eyelashes_ " well, they were just wrong weren't they?

Kamasaki scowled and turned back around. Kenji tucked his hands behind his head and resettled himself in his seat luxuriously. _I love the smell of victory in the evenings._

_—_

Group: DTU Men's Volleyball  
From: Moniwa K.  
_@everyone_ _So based on people's responses, it looks like tomorrow (Saturday) night is our best option. We'll be meeting at the Red Room at 9pm. Sasaya has generously offered his apartment for those of us who might want to pre-game. RSVP if you're coming to the pre-game and remember to bring a drink and a snack._

From: Futakuchi K.  
_count us out re: pregame_ _  
_ _aone and i got a thing_

From: Koganegawa K.  
_eeeeexciting!_ _  
_ _@Futakuchi K._ _what kind of thing, senpai??_

Back in his own apartment, Kenji sighed and looked out the window. The pigeons on the lampost below were the beneficiaries of his most unimpressed look. Kogane did not understand the concept of _being vague on purpose._

Private Message: Kogane  
From: Futakuchi  
_> link attached_  
_read this and then tell me it's a good idea to keep asking me questions_ _  
_ _actually hold up I know you're taking that literally_ _  
_ _read this and then drop it, thanks_

From: Kogane  
_omg I'm so sorry (ᗒᗣᗕ)՞_ _  
_ _I wasn't trying to be insensitive! ｡･ﾟ･(ﾉД`)ヽ_ _  
_ _I want you and aone-san to know I support you both!!_

Kenji rolled his eyes. Still, Kogane didn't have a mean bone in his body and he knew it. He didn't deserve Kenji getting pissy at him.

From: Futakuchi  
_at ease, private_ _  
_ _it's all good_ _  
_ _just don't bring it up again and we'll call it even, okay?_

From: Kogane  
_okay!_

_\- -_

"You gotta wear the black turtleneck," Kenji called. It was Saturday night. Takano had just gotten out of the shower. Kenji, trying to be a bro, was digging through his closet for him. Takano hadn't spent a lot of time in the club scene and Kenji knew the guy wanted to make a good impression. Hence the turtleneck. Takano was so pale and ripped that when he wore it, he looked like the villain in a spy movie. Like, he was definitely here to kill you, but he was going to do it politely. And Kenji could think of several people who were into getting taken apart politely. Besides. Looking threatening in a turtleneck was a power move in and of itself. It was perfect. 

So yeah, Kenji totally wanted to see his best friend looking like a spy villain. Also Takano was still in the phase of trying to figure his sexuality out and was not the most secure about that fact. Kenji had seen how much Chibi-chan from Karasuno had affected him, and how that had kind of freaked him out. And Kenji couldn't help him with _that_ but he could help him with this. Kenji cared if his bestie was upset. Or whatever. Just 'cause Kenji could get attention from the person he wanted when he wanted it, didn't mean he wasn't sympathetic to how much it sucked when you couldn't.

"What do you think?" he asked, examining himself in the full-length mirror, the one whoever had had the apartment before them had superglued to the end of the hallway. "Is the ball cap too douchey?" His jeans were black and ripped and his tank top was just barely long enough so he figured he was already flirting with the douche line pretty hard.

Takano appeared behind him and joined him in his examination. Lifting the cap from where it sat on Kenji's head, he turned it around. "Not backwards."

"Huh." Kenji looked at this edited version of himself. "Yeah, good point."

From the hallway, he heard his phone buzz. He scooped it up from where it had been chucked onto the top bunk.

From: Sakunami  
_Hey!_ _  
_ _Sorry, I know this is last minute but can I pregame with you and Aone-san instead?_ _  
_ _I didn't realize I forgot to RSVP to Sasaya-san's thing and I feel bad showing up unannounced ;;;_

Kenji was approximately 300% sure nobody on their team would ever complain about Sakunami showing up unannounced. All the guys loved him. He just needed to be nudged into heading to Sasaya's so everyone could make him realize it. 

Plus it would be kinda awkward if Sakunami came with them tonight. 

From: Futakuchi  
_we're going to the cobalt nightclub_ _  
_ _look it up and see if you still wanna go_ _  
_ _> image attached_ _  
_ _if you show up to sasaya's house no one's gonna get mad, you know_

Sakunami wasn't as slow on the uptake as Kogane. He didn't need Kenji to spell it out. He'd look it up, and realize all the obvious reasons he should go hang with the rest of the team instead. Sending him the picture of the live band playing that night would only reinforce this. Kenji had never seen so many women with shaved heads.

Takano drew his attention at that moment by holding up two pairs of pants. 

"Gray," Kenji said. It would complete the spy-villain look. At the door, he directed Takano into his white high-tops. Both of them were casual sneakerheads. With their usual rotations of shoes lined up in the genkan, they gave off the impression of perpetually having six people over. Kenji took a moment to slip on his own jacket and they were out the door.

The train ride to the Cobalt was mostly quiet, but Kenji was fine with that. Takano was silent as the tomb, but unlike other quiet people, he didn't actively _need_ Kenji to talk. Some people didn't know how to react to him when he wasn't running his mouth, and he'd always found that kind of insulting. But Takano was fine looking out the window, and Kenji put his headphones in and they passed the time comfortably. 

Comfortably that was, until they exited the train station and Kenji got another text.

From: Sakunami  
_I'm here senpai!_ _  
_ _Where are you?_

"What the fuck," he breathed. He felt Takano's presence at his shoulder, inquisitive. Kenji tilted his phone to show him. Takano shot him a glance. "Yeah, I don't know either."

From: Futakuchi  
_hey did you mean to text this to *me*_

From: Sakunami _  
_ _Yes?_ _  
_ _Is that okay?_ _  
_ _I thought you said I could come watch the band with you?_

 _Did_ _I?_ With a sinking feeling, he scrolled back up to his earlier messages. He felt the dawning comprehension sweep over him in a cold wave, seeing his words in the way Sakunami must have seen them.

From: Futakuchi  
_k to clarify_ _  
_ _you're at the cobalt right now?_

From: Sakunami  
_Yes?_ _  
_ _Is that wrong?_

Kenji looked at Takano. Takano looked at him. "Well, too late now I guess," Kenji said. Tanako nodded, resigned.

From: Futakuchi  
_hang tight we'll be there in 5_

Their little libero was waiting for them when they came up through the alleyway, looking like a choir boy in a yellow sweatshirt with a bubbly font. "Sakunami!" Kenji called. Sakunami turned eagerly.

"Futakuchi-san! Aone-san!"

"Hey." Kenji offered him a crooked smile. "Find this place okay?" 

"Mmhm! Never been to this section of the city before though." Sakunami looked up at Takano. "You look cool, senpai."

"Thank you."

"Hey Sakunami." Kenji resisted the urge to shift his weight. "You uh. You know what kind of bar this is, right?"

Sakunami blinked at him, an answer in and of itself. "One with... live music?"

 _Ugh. Okay._ "I mean yes, but... Wait, hold on." Kenji dug in his pocket for his phone, but Takano beat him to it. 

Holding out his screen, Takano showed Sakunami what Kenji was going to assume was the club's website. He watched Sakunami's eyes slowly widen as he read. He'd probably noticed the rainbow flag by now.

"So. So..." Sakunami straightened up, looking from Kenji to Takano and back again. "Are you... um. Is this—"

Kenji cut in, to save the kid from floundering. "Is this a gay bar? It sure is." He put on his most casual tone and body language. Which was pretty damn casual if he did say so himself. "And to answer your other question, I uh, play for both teams. I guess."

Sakunami blinked up at him. "You... Oh. _OH_." His eyes widened. He looked over Kenji's shoulder. "Aone-san?"

"What he said," Takano agreed. Kenji kept his face carefully static. He wasn't sure if Takano was trying the bisexual label on for size or if he was just uncomfortable with trying to explain the whole " _f_ _iguring things out_ " situation. Either were possible. 

"Oh." Sakunami shifted from foot to foot. "I didn't know."

"Eh, don't worry about it." Kenji favored him with his most unconcerned smile. "You know now." He jerked his head to the Cobalt's front door. "Still wanna come in?"

"Is it okay?" Sakunami asked shyly. "I looked up the band and they seem really cool. I really was excited to see them."

The mental image of Sakunami in his stupidly adorable yellow sweater approaching the leather-clad lesbian band to tell them he was a fan was enough to get Kenji to achieve Nirvana. he thought. "Sure thing," he said aloud. "Maybe we'll get a chance to talk 'em." He slung an arm over Sakunami's shoulders. "You got cash for the cover charge?"

"Yup! I stopped by an ATM before I got on the train."

"Smart boy."

Sakunami was a sweetheart. It would be chill to hang out with him. And sure, he was about to walk into a gay bar looking like a total twink but he had Kenji and Takano to look out for him. Not that Kenji thought Sakunami was the kind of guy who would be grossed out by gay men hitting on him, but, _well_. Most dudes didn't realize how much it could rattle you to get unwanted attention from someone significantly bigger and taller than you. 

The band was just getting set up as they got inside. There were a few tables, most of which were already full. Kenji led them to the bar, sitting Sakunami between them. The bartender slid him the drink menu and he looked it over while Sakunami checked his phone.

"Ah, Kamasaki-san is wondering where I am," he said. 

_See? They still wanted you to come,_ half of Kenji's brain went. The other half went, _Kamasaki, huh?_ "Come on," he said, digging out his own phone. "Selfie. I'll send it to him." Leaning into Sakunami's space, he snapped a picture of the three of them. Sakunami held up a peace sign, looking cute as all hell while Takano loomed stoically in the background.

From: Futakuchi  
_> image attached_ _  
_ _i'm stealing your boy_

From: Kamasaki  
_oh so that's where he went_ _  
_ _ur not taking him anywhere weird are you_

Kenji rolled his eyes. 

From: Futakuchi  
_oh ye of little faith_ _  
_ _i promise to be good, okay senpai_

From: Kamasaki  
_for some reason I always get a weird feeling whenever you promise to be good_

Kenji started typing out, " _it's the anticipation_ ," and hastily deleted it. " _Maybe you should talk to your doctor about that,"_ he settled for instead. " _Sounds like it could be a condition. You are getting old, you know._ " Re-reading the triple text, he wondered if he sounded too defensive. He'd been too eager to pivot, probably. Teasing Kamasaki was one thing but he was too sober to justify outright flirtation. Their relationship had mellowed in the three years they'd played together. Sure, they bickered a lot, but he'd be lying if he said they didn't get each other in some weird way. They'd finally managed to build some sort of truce so...

Anyway, he was too sober. He returned his attention to the drink menu. 

The music was starting up as they placed their orders (some crafty-artisanal nonsense for Takano, a Chinese fruit beer for Sakunami, and a fruity cocktail for Kenji. He was in a gay bar. He'd drink whatever he wanted). Kenji and Sakunami both turned to watch better, Kenji with his elbows sprawled along the bar, Sakunami with his hands gripping the front of his barstool eagerly. Takano just kind of turned his head over his shoulder as the bar's emcee announced the performers. Based on the look of the band from their poster, Kenji was expecting something loud and aggressive. He was _not_ disappointed. He'd always found it life-affirming about when he could feel the bass thumping in his chest. 

While the music played, Kenji let himself take in the sights. There were plenty of people to satisfy his tastes in here, people of all genders. (He also thought he saw one or two familiar faces but that was probably him projecting.) He definitely saw a few people eyeing him back which was always a nice ego boost. He even saw a few people checking out Takano and that made him proud by association. He was getting soft, clearly.

Also, the beauty of having such a quiet best friend was the ability to have a more-or-less complete conversation in a loud bar without even saying anything. And they could do it all right over Sakunami's head.

A petit, freckled young man was just walking away from the bar, drink in hand. Kenji indicated him with a tip of his chin. _What about him?_ He watched Takano follow his gaze, watched him consider.

Then he tilted his head in a kind of shrug. _Not bad._

Kenji cast his gaze around again, drumming his fingers on the bar-top, keeping the beat as he thought. His eyes landed on a taller guy. A big guy. Not quite Takano big, but getting there. His denim jacket had the words " _The adults are lying_ " painted on the back and his hair was dyed a platinum blond. 

He looked back at Takano and saw Takano already looking at him knowingly. Takano snorted. _Typical._

Kenji glared back. _Oh, shut up._

"I gotta go to the restroom," Sakunami said, some time later as the band was taking a break. Kenji, looking over the drink menu again, just hummed in acknowledgement. 

His first cocktail was making him feel loose but Kenji had always had a pretty high alcohol tolerance. He'd had a good dinner earlier which meant he could definitely down four more drinks without blinking. There shot on the menu called "Hate Sex." The ingredients were listed as; coconut rum, Jägermeister, and loathing. He took a picture. 

From: Futakuchi  
_> image attached_

From: Kamasaki  
_you tryin to tell me something?_

From: Futakuchi  
_I don't know,_ _am I?_

Sakunami's need for the bathroom had prompted Kenji's body to remind him he could probably use it too. "Bathroom," he told Takano, sliding off his stool. 

The crowd was milling about now that the band was on break. Kenji was practically wading through people to get to the restrooms, located at the back of the club. Hopefully Sakunami hadn't had too much trouble. Kenji had height that he could leverage but Sakunami was a good 20 cm shorter than him. At least by the time he reached the men's room the crowd had thinned out. Kenji reached out a hand to push on the door.

It swung open and he came nose-to-nose with Oikawa Tooru. 

Kenji blinked. Neither of them moved. _I thought Aoba Johsai would've all gone home by now?_ He took in the expression on Oikawa's face. His grin was the shit-eating variety and he didn't seem surprised to see Kenji. If anything, he seemed like he _expected_ it. 

Kenji's eyes slid over his shoulder to a swath of yellow. Sakunami was standing at the sink, staring after Oikawa, eyes wide and cheeks flushed. Not in a flattering way either. With a cold hand clenching his gut, Kenji realized Sakunami almost looked _hurt_. To make it worse another guy, a big guy, was stepping up behind him, getting his attention. 

Kenji's body moved on its own. Oikawa tried to step around him, but Kenji shoved _hard_ with his shoulder, knocking him in the wall. Then he was barging into the bathroom properly. Sakunami turned to this new guy, and Kenji strained to hear what he was saying.

"He's right, you know," the new guy said. Even from behind, Kenji could see Sakunami flinch. "It's an asset. A lot of guys are into that."

"I—" Sakunami faltered.

"Heyyy Saku-kun." Kenji made his voice as bright and careless as possible. It was the one that always pissed off their opponents. Sakunami whipped around once again, looking up at him. 

"Futakuchi-san!"

"What's going on?" Kenji didn't put an arm around him or anything, just made sure to stand closer than necessary, so that his chest was almost brushing Sakunami's shoulder. He levelled the new guy with a look, unblinking. 

New guy seemed smart at least. He raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Sorry, sorry." Running his hands briefly under the sink, he was out the door. 

Kenji stood with Sakunami the whole time, one hand on the counter (mostly for show, the sink counter was wet and it was gross), one hand on his hip, humming carelessly. Sakunami washed his hands slowly, like he was trying to catch his breath.

Miraculously, once the other guy left, they were alone in the bathroom. "So." Kenji's voice was casual. "That was Oikawa."

"Uh, yeah." Sakunami tried to match his tone. He didn't quite make it. "Yeah it was."

"What'd he say to you?"

"Nothing." Sakunami wasn't quite meeting his eyes.

" _Sakunami_." Kenji's light expression fell away. "What did that prick say to you?"

"It wasn't anything personal, senpai. He was just blowing off steam." Sakunami glanced up. Some redness was lingering on the high points of his cheeks. He glanced away again. "It's not a big deal, okay?"

Kenji regarded him for a moment, taking in his body language, his words. Whatever Oikawa had said to him, whyever he'd said it, it would be just as humiliating for Sakunami to have to repeat it as it had been to hear in the first place. There was always an embarrassment that came from knowing the shit other people thought they could get away with saying to you. And Oikawa _had_ gotten away with it. He'd walked right out the door. The least Kenji could do was not force Sakunami to repeat it.

"Okay," he said.

Sakunami looked up at him, startled. "Okay?" 

"Yup. You mind waiting for me? I just gotta piss."

"Oh. Uh, sure." Sakunami looked surprised but he didn't protest. For the first time in this whole encounter, his shoulders had relaxed. Kenji took the silver lining. And at least this way, he'd be where Kenji could see him.

 _We gotta get him back to the team,_ Kenji thought as he stepped to a urinal. _The guys'll cheer him up._

Offering to leave right away would make Sakunami feel worse, like he'd somehow ruined the fun. So the best thing to do, Kenji figured, was to stick it out like nothing had happened. But if Oikawa was still hanging around when they left the bathroom, if he gave Kenji half a reason... This was the thing—there were douchebags and then there were _douchebags._ Kenji himself had always tried to stay on one side of that line. He was rowdy sure, and he liked to pick fights, but there was a reason they had the rule, "pick on someone your own size." It was fun and it was a challenge to cut your teeth on people who could fight back. It was fucking _gross_ to go around making nice people feel small. It was especially gross when it was someone like Sakunami who had never hurt anyone in his life.

 _I swear to God, if Oikawa is talking to Takano when we get back..._

He wasn't. In fact, as Kenji scanned the bar, Oikawa was nowhere in sight. He didn't know whether or not to be relieved. On the one hand, maybe the bitch had retreated for now. On the other, Kenji didn't want to keep swiveling his head around, on constant lookout. Takano nodded in acknowledgement as they sat back down and as he took his seat, Kenji took out his phone.

From: Kenji  
_did you see oikawa just now?_

And then, because Takano was trash at checking his phone, Kenji stared very pointedly at the side of his head. Sakunami, checking his own social media, didn't seem to notice. Slowly, Takano turned and looked at him. Kenji held up his phone as discreetly as possible. Takano reached into the inside pocket of his jacket (who kept their phone _there_ anyway?) and checked his messages. He looked at Kenji and then typed something out.

From: (눈_눈)  
_no_ _  
_ _should I have_

From: Kenji  
_nah, if you didn't see him, don't worry about it_

He wasn't about to explain to Takano what happened. Especially not over text and _especially_ not when Sakunami was sitting right there. The kid probably already felt insecure enough without needing to feel like his senpais were talking behind his back. Kenji slipped his phone away and leaned in to get Sakunami's attention.

"Hey," he said. "I wanna try that beer you were drinking. Which one was it?"

"Oh, let me show you." Sakunami took the menu from the bar counter and flipped through it. "That one."

"Thanks." Kenji turned on his stool, waiting to get the bartender's attention.

"Futakuchi-san?" Sakunami asked once he'd ordered. His voice was cautious. It made Kenji raise an eyebrow.

"Hm?"

"It's okay if you don't want to tell me but um. What kind of guys do you like?"

 _Why, you wanna date me or something?_ was the immediate reply that rose up Kenji's throat. He bit it down. It was a knee-jerk reaction to a question that often came from sources far less friendly than Sakunami. "Nah, we can talk about it," he said instead. "I like a lot of kinds of guys, I guess." He took a swig of his beer to buy himself some time. 

Takano was definitely looking at him. Kenji glared at him out of the corner of his eye. _Shut UP._ He wasn't lying; he definitely could appreciate many flavors of masculinity. The problem was, he had a preference and Takano knew it.

"Do you... Do you like guys more than girls?" Sakunami hesitated as he said it. Man, just _look_ at this kid with his wide dark eyes, trying not to step on Kenji's toes. As if Kenji ever needed anyone to worry about his toes. 

"No, they're probably about the same for me." The kind of people he checked out in a week was a pretty even split at least. He considered asking Sakunami something about his taste in women, but he already knew it. They'd all had plenty of discussions in training camps and during long bus rides. Sakunami, if he remembered right, liked that knock-out combination of cute and classy. 

"Do you like tall guys?"

Kenji carefully tamped down on anything that wasn't his casual, unaffected jock personality. "Tall guys are good." _Takano, I can see you smirking, you dick._ "If you've never considered dating a tall girl, you should look into it. Tall people are hot." And obviously he was very much including himself in that statement.

Sakunami laughed. "'Look into it.' You make it sound so easy." 

"Believe in the power of the self, young grasshopper." Because he didn't just want to keep letting Sakunami ask questions like this was an interview, and because he wanted to show the kid how to be comfortable talking about this, he looked around the bar again. "See that guy?" he asked, pointing to the one he'd seen earlier, the one with the denim jacket. "He's pretty hot."

"Oh." Sakunami considered him, tilting his head earnestly. His sincerity made Kenji feel weirdly bad about himself. He'd never been that sincere about anything in his _life_. He compensated for this by silently vowing that if Sakunami ever needed someone killed, between him and Takano, they could probably do it. Or maybe he could bait Kamasaki into it.

"He has stubble," Sakunami said eventually. "My sister says stubble is hot, right?"

"Your sister is very wise," Kenji said. "Stubble is definitely hot." 

Takano butted in, sudden and smug. "What about sideburns?" 

" _None of your damn business_." Kenji's voice came out way too loud. Sakunami barked a laugh and then clapped a hand over his mouth, looking sheepish. "We could start talking about _your_ taste in men, Aone." 

Takano glared. He was saved from further discussion though when the emcee returned to the stage, announcing the band's second set.

"So what do you think of the music?" Kenji asked in Sakunami's ear as the bassline started up. "Everything you dreamed it'd be?"

"I really like them!" Sakunami was so close that when he turned his head, his bangs tickled Kenji's nose. "I wonder if I could get their CD?" 

"Merch table," Kenji suggested, pointing to it with his beer bottle. The music was getting too loud for complete sentences, so after Sakunami nodded his agreement, Kenji sat back on his stool and resolved to enjoy the rest of the set.

 _Wonder if Kamasaki has a denim jacket?_ Kenji frowned as the thought rose unbidden. Honestly though, he'd been having thoughts like this so often for the past two years, he'd almost gotten used to them. They were like intrusive thoughts, really. 

He still remembered the first time he'd seen Kamasaki. It was at volleyball practice, naturally. Kenji had been a first year, striding into the gym like he owned it, determined to act like he wasn't nervous to start playing college ball. Moniwa, though not a captain at the time, was already there helping direct the first years and Kamasaki was helping Moniwa. He'd stood tall, arms folded, brows furrowed, looking so intimidating and annoyed that Kenji couldn't help himself— _Oh, I HAVE_ _to bother that guy._ It was a compulsion that came to him sometimes, the urgent need to get a reaction from the person in front of him, though he had rarely felt it as strongly as he did just then. And Kamasaki had gone and sealed his own fate because his reactions were so _good_. 

Of course, in a way it had all backfired because now, three years later, Kenji kept getting these persistent thoughts about the guy and Kamasaki probably saw him as his annoying kid brother or something. Not that it bothered him. Why would it? Nothing bothered him.

Anyway, all things considered, them getting out of the Cobalt was almost anti-climatic. Oikawa didn't show his face again. When Sakunami slipped off to chat up the girl at the merch table, Kenji casually waved the bartender down for the bill. 

"Together or separate?" 

"Together. All three of us," Kenji clarified. Takano shot him a questioning look. "Don't worry about it," Kenji muttered out the side of his mouth. It was definitely going to eat up pretty much all the fun money he should even think about spending this month, but hey. He had to be a good senpai _sometime,_ right? Couldn't just keep up the bratty kouhai routine forever. 

As he was tucking his credit card back into his wallet, he got another text. 

Private Message: Sasaya, Futakuchi, Aone, Kamasaki  
From: Sasaya  
_Will the two of you hurry up and get over here_ _  
_ _Aoba Johsai is here and it's giving me the creeps_

From: Futakuchi _  
_ _what the actual fuck_ _  
_ _what did I do to deserve this_

From: Kamasaki  
_yeah cuz this is so hard for you personally_ _  
_ _ur not even here_

From: Futakuchi  
_wait is oikawa there_

From: Sasaya  
_Yeah, why wouldn't he be_

Takano was really staring at him now, his “ _I want to talk to you”_ face. He probably wanted an explanation about the Oikawa thing, and Kenji couldn't blame him. "Later," he promised, and not a moment too soon. Fifteen seconds hadn't gone by before Sakunami was back, slipping in between them. "Ready to go?" Kenji asked. This was shaping up to be a hell of a weird night.

"Yep! I just gotta settle my tab." 

"Oh I got it already." 

Sakunami sputtered. "You—you did?"

"Yup." He smiled. "Come on, I gotta treat my deserving kouhai every once in a while, right? You played some fucking _gusty_ defense for us this weekend."

Sakunami was eyeing him carefully. Kenji almost never made reference to his upperclassmen status and they all knew it. Kenji just kept his smile relaxed. With the night this kid was having, he deserved to be treated. "Well, thank you, senpai," Sakunami said finally, a cautious smile on his face.

"Yeah, of course." Kenji shrugged his jacket on and Takano led the way towards the door. "You know, in a way, you're actually doing _me_ a favor. Letting me pay for you makes my brain release serotonin, so really, I should be thanking you. For boosting my ego."

Sakunami, used to his bullshit, just wrinkled his nose. His eyes were sparkling though and Kenji counted that as a win. "Well, you're welcome I guess." Then, "I don't know if the team will thank me though, for your ego."

Kenji grinned. Sakunami rarely got sassy like that. "Eh," he said as they exited out onto the street. "That's why we keep Kamasaki. Keeps it balanced."

The Red Room was only a ten minute train ride away. Kenji had been there before. It was known as a foreigner's bar with open-mic karaoke nights. Kenji was looking forward to this because not only was his English was pretty decent, to the surprise of most people, Takano had a passable grasp on Korean. They could eavesdrop in two languages and listening to foreigners gossip could be _outrageous_. 

The rest of their team was divided up between two booths in the back corner of the room. Kamasaki wasn't with them, and Kenji cast his gaze around before finally spotting him up at the bar with Sasaya, ordering. They were a little far for Kenji to get a good look so he settled for leading the way to the team's booth. 

"We're here, you're welcome," he announced, leaning a hand against the vinyl back, right beside Kogane's head. 

Kogane, of course, looked disgustingly happy to see them. "You came! You're here!" 

"Well spotted." Kenji looked between the two booths, judging where they were going to have space to sit. Distantly, he heard Kogane telling Sakunami what was, in Kenji's conservative estimation, every single thought he'd had in the three hours since they'd last seen each other.

Moniwa, anticipating Kenji's problem said, "We were thinking it might be easiest if we got some chairs for the end of the tables and put the tallest people in them."

"Good thinking. How many you want us to grab?" Kenji looked around for a staff member.

"Four should be good?"

"On it." Kenji went to flag down a server, confident Takano would be trailing behind him. 

Kamasaki and Sasaya were returning from the bar, drinks in hand as Kenji and Takano set up the chairs. "Kongane," Takano said, beckoning him into the chair beside him. They were the two biggest people on the team, along with Kenji and—

 _Takano, you meddling fuck._

"Budge over," Kamasaki said, taking the seat right beside him. To Kenji's eternal despair he looked good and smelled really fucking nice. His shirt made his chest look amazing. 

"Have you considered taking up less space?" Kenji asked, as snide as possible. "It can't _always_ be bulking season in the gym."

"You think I'm bulking?" Kamasaki's grin bordered on a leer. Kenji cursed the day he had noticed that Kenji's comments on his body were backhanded compliments. 

"I'm not thinking about you at all." Kenji turned away from him with as much disdain as he could muster. Sakunami had taken up Kogane's old seat in the booth and was listening to him babble with all the patience of an angel. Kenji opened his mouth to cut in, to give the kid some breathing room, when Kogane's attention locked on him instead.

"Futakuchi-san! Kamasaki-san said you could teach me what body shots are."

"Oh did he?" With an impressive display of willpower, Kenji did not turn to look back at Kamasaki. "Did Kamasaki-san tell you I've only ever done body shots once?"

Behind him, Kamasaki snorted. Kenji _did_ turn then, squinting at him in calculation. In reality, Kenji had taken body shots four times in his life, five if you counted the time it had been _his_ belly button getting used. Kamasaki, however, had only been there for one of those times. He wracked his brain briefly, trying to remember if he could have possibly told Kamasaki about the other times or if Kamasaki was just making a very educated guess. Both had uncomfortable implications. 

"Just once, huh? Thought you were supposed to be good at math," Kamasaki drawled, which unfortunately seemed to imply the former option. What reason Kenji could have had for telling him was beyond human understanding. 

"I'm rounding down," he said peevishly, before turning back to Kogane. "So. You want to do a body shot?" 

"I mean, everyone talks about them like they're a lot of fun," Kogane said. "But I should probably know what they are first."

Sound logic. "Okay. Well, you know what a tequila shot is? And how you do it?"

"Yup!"

"'Kay, well, a body shot is where you put the salt on someone and pour the tequila in that someone's belly button, and then you lick it all off them." 

Kogane blinked innocently. Kenji could practically see the cogs turning in his head. "Is that... Does that taste good?"

"Depends." Kenji would pay good money to know if Kamasaki was still listening to this conversation and what expression was on his face. "If you think the person is hot, then usually, yeah."

"What does that have to do with it?" Most people wouldn't know it because Kogane was so huge, but he definitely had the Bambi-eyes look going on sometimes. 

Kenji smirked. "You have a crush?"

"Of course!" A flush of pink joined Kogane's Bambi-eyed routine. 

" _So,_ imagine your crush laid out on a table with their shirt off and you get to lick alcohol off their abs." Kenji's smirk widened at the way Kogane's face gradually went red. "You're welcome for that mental image, by the way." He heard Kamasaki snort again. Kenji really _really_ hoped that if he had told Kamasaki about his experience with body shots it hadn't been in some horrible drunken lead-up to trying to lick alcohol off _his_ abs. 

Which. Kenji was really confused about that, because he had never been blackout drunk in his life, had barely been more than pleasantly tipsy, so if he _had_ had that conversation with Kamasaki, there was no way he wouldn't remember it. 

"Anyway," he continued to save Kogane from his own red face. "I could offer a practical demonstration but that would probably get us kicked out." 

"I would definitely appreciate if any body shots you do were on your own time," Moniwa put in.

"There you go." Kenji leaned back in his seat. "Our fearless captain has spoken."

"But you'll show me later, won't you?" Kogane asked eagerly. Kenji looked him over in consideration. He wondered if his little pitch about licking your crush's abs had worked for the guy. Who _was_ Kogane's crush anyway? 

"If I get to pick who I do it off of? Sure." 

"Whoever goes up to the bar next, can they ask for water for everyone?" Moniwa cut in, raising his voice over the general chatter.

"I'll go," Kenji said, at the same time Kamasaki said, "Got it." They glanced at each other, Kenji's face reflexively smoothing itself into innocence in response to Kamasaki's suspicious stare. 

"Well, thanks you two." Moniwa just sounded amused. 

"How many people we got?" Kamasaki asked, still eyeing Kenji warily.

"Ten, I think?" Moniwa did a quick headcount. "Yeah, ten. Don't take too long okay? Karaoke's starting up soon!"

"You doing karaoke, Moniwa-san?" Kenji asked, climbing out of his seat. 

"I signed you two up for it!"

"Hah?" Kamasaki said, just as Kenji said, "What?" He tried to not think about the fact that it was the second time in as many minutes that they'd spoken in unison.

"If you don't do it, I'm giving Kogane all our spots!" Moniwa's smile was devious. "Run along now."

Kenji stared at him. Kamasaki scoffed and turned away. "Come along, brat." 

"I haven't even done anything bratty recently," Kenji protested trailing after him. "Moniwa-san scares me sometimes," he added, glancing back over his shoulder.

"Then you're smarter than you look."

"Hey." Kenji frowned. "I don't need this from you."

"And yet you take it from me." Kamasaki was smirking. Kenji could see it even a step behind. He felt his frown deepen. 

"Remind me, senpai. What's your GPA again?" 

Kamasaki turned his head to scowl at him. "C's get degrees, Futakuchi." 

Kenji hummed thoughtfully. "You know I read somewhere," he said, nerd mode kicking in before he could stop himself, "people with that mentality actually make really good business people. They're supposed to be more efficient or something."

Kamasaki, a finance major, eyed him warily. Kenji felt this was unfair, considering that he was in total earnest. He _did_ read, okay? Some of it was even interesting. Kamasaki seemed to be able to tell, because his expression relaxed. "I definitely ain't your typical business major, so I dunno if that applies to me."

Kenji knew this. Kamasaki was only getting his degree so he could help with his dad's furniture business. "'Cause you're not a sociopath, you mean?"

Kamasaki blinked. Then he snorted. "That might be the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Kenji grinned. "Enjoy it while it lasts." 

There was a slight lineup of people trying to get the bartender's attention. Kenji and Kamasaki idled patiently near the back of the line. A few foreign girls sitting at a table nearby were eyeing them. Kenji propped his elbow up on Kamasaki's shoulder and smiled in their direction. In his peripheral, he saw Kamasaki turn his head, eyeing him suspiciously. Then he followed the direction of Kenji's gaze. Kenji saw him nod politely. The girls smiled back.

"You always flirt with everyone?" Kamasaki asked him, catching him off-guard.

"Sure, if I feel like it." Kenji elected not to comment on who was on the receiving end of 90% of that behavior these days. "Flirting's fun."

"Maybe you're just always horny." 

"You sure you want to give that topic up for discussion, Kamachi _-_ san?" Kenji tilted his head to smirk at him. Kamasaki huffed and stepped out from under his elbow. Kenji stumbled.

"Hey," he said when he'd righted himself. "Why'd you make _me_ explain body shots to Kogane?"

"Only heard you talking about them for like half an hour with the captain from Johzenji yesterday. You got a loud voice, you know that?"

" _I_ have a loud voice?" Kenji looked at him incredulously. "You want to be the pot or the kettle?" 

"...Yeah okay, you got me there." And the admission made Kenji feel weirdly pleased.

"You said Aoba Johsai is here?" he asked, suddenly remembering why he'd wanted to come up to the bar in the first place.

"Oh yeah." Kamasaki pointed across the room to where a few familiar faces were chatting up some foreign girls. It wasn't the entire team, only four of them. The seniors, if Kenji remembered correctly. He frowned to see Oikawa with them. "Thought they would've gone home by now, you know?"

"Me too."

"Sasaya and me figure, maybe one of 'em has a car. Then they coulda drove separate from the team."

"Could be. Did they give you guys any grief or anything?" 

There was a shrug in Kamasaki's voice. "Their captain made it kinda weird for a while, but what else is new I guess. Moniwa went to say hi to 'em and that kinda smoothed things." 

Kenji hummed. "That's good..." He looked back over to Kamasaki. "Wait, what do you mean he was making it weird?"

Kamasaki scratched at the back of his head. "He was being all passive-aggressive about having to watch us get first place at the award ceremony. Pretty damn weird if you ask me 'cause it was like, the most laid back award ceremony I've ever been to—"

"It was," Kenji agreed. There hadn't even been an audience really. Personally, Kenji appreciated any ceremony where he could stay seated the whole time, feet up on the bleachers in front of him. There hadn't even been ribbons for everyone, just a silly trophy that got passed back and forth between the winning teams, year to year. "Oikawa's a dick, huh."

"Yeah, he's always been like that. The others seem fine though."

It took them a few laps to bring all the water glasses over, the bartender lining them up all in one go at the end of the bar so she could move on to help other people. "You're just in time!" Moniwa told them cheerfully as they set the last of them down. "I've been told you're third in line for karaoke."

"I'm going right after you," Kogane told them brightly. 

"How about that?" Kenji's voice was flat, but that was mainly on principal. In reality, Kogane had a more than passable voice, so no one could fault him for performing. If Kenji _was_ going to protest, it would probably be on the basis of the song choice. Kogane was always picking painfully tender slow acoustic songs that made Kenji's brainwaves feel like they were going hypothermic.

As for him and Kamasaki, they had known each other long enough that Kenji knew they had similar taste in music. And the team had been to karaoke enough times for the two of them to know that this could be exploited for bragging rights. For starters, Kamasaki was actually a decent rapper. A lot of people thought rapping was easy, just about learning all the words. That was a lethal misconception. The timing and diction and intonation all mattered, and Kamasaki was more decent at all those things. And for his own part, well. Kenji had done a lot of choir in elementary school, not that he liked to talk about it. His mom still had the pictures. 

"They got the songbook up at the front," Moniwa offered. "You might want to check it out." 

"Will do. Kogane!" Kamasaki called. Kogane perked. "Did you already pick yours?"

Kogane shook his head violently. "Not yet."

"Come up with us. It's better to have it ready." 

Aoba Johsai was still there as they crossed the bar, still chatting with the group of foreigners Kenji had seen them with earlier. One of them, their sleepy-eyed middle blocker, caught Kenji's eye and nodded in acknowledgement. Kenji made himself nod back. Oikawa's bullshit aside, Kamasaki was right. The others seemed fine.

Kogane, in his enthusiasm, got to the song book first. Kenji groaned when he saw him looking through every impossibly sappy love song they had. 

"What's with you?" Kamasaki asked.

"Artistic differences," Kenji muttered. "Kogane continues his quest to put me in a coma via song." 

Kamasaki's shoulder knocked against his, none too gently. Kenji shoved back. "What's wrong with a little romance, you punk? Most people would say it's nice." 

"All these songs are like, ten beats a minute, _maximum_. None of them have a bassline. They make me want to pull the fire alarm just so I have something to _do_."

"If only all music was catered to you, huh princess?" Kamasaki arched an eyebrow at him. "The world would be a happier place, is that it?" 

"It's a burden having superior taste," Kenji informed him. "But someone has to do it."

Kamasaki laughed, an honest laugh, his head thrown back a bit, and Kenji ignored the part of himself that felt proud. "You really are a brat, aren't you?" If Kenji didn't know better, he would have called that tone of voice _affectionate._ Kamasaki, however, didn't give him a chance to dwell on it. "Come on," he said. "Our turn." 

The bickering was actually fairly minimal as they found something they could duet. They really did have similar taste in music. And honestly, Kenji was looking forward to it. Moniwa knew him well; he _loved_ performing. He loved anything that involved him having a captive audience. He even loved doing presentations in class, which he had been told was weird. There was going to be a period of roughly four minutes in the immediate future where everyone in the bar was going to be looking at them and Kenji _could not wait_.

The two people in front of them were foreigners, one who sang an English song Kenji vaguely recognized, and the other performing K-pop. "Hey," Kenji said, leaning over to speak directly into Kamasaki's ear. "Look at Takano." He watched Kamasaki turn his head. Takano was stoically nodding along to the aggressive tempo. He watched Kamasaki grin. Takano head-bobbing was a national treasure. His expression was so neutral that at a fast pace like this he looked like a lobotomized chicken. Kenji had the _best_ best friend. 

Then the second guy was done and their names were being called. Kamasaki made a show of cracking his neck as they stood up. "Let's do this."

People were usually pretty forgiving at karaoke, since everyone was just there to have fun. There was no harm in messing around, in doing songs you only kind of knew. However. There was an entire pub full of people who were going to be listening, _Aoba Johsai_ was going to be listening, and Kenji wanted to show off. They'd pick a song he could do in his _sleep_. Kenji watched the heads start to turn as their music began, watched people's attention refocus as they realized the two of them knew what they were doing. Kamasaki's delivery was smooth, fast and effortless. Kenji had a very respectable range and he was having fun hitting the interjections between Kamasaki's lines. It was moments like this, when he and Kamasaki were working well together, when everything was flowing, that the part of his brain that housed his crush really started clawing at the bars. It made something in his chest absolutely purr.

The two of them were clearly comfortable in front of a crowd and the audience was responding to that. The applause, when they finished, was a more enthusiastic than before. Kenji tipped his hat, just because he could. A few wait-staff grinned at them as they came off the stage.

"And now for something completely different," Kenji muttered as Kogane approached them. Kamasaki's broad palm clamped onto his skull, squeezing him through his ball cap.

"Be nice," he ordered. "Knock 'em dead kid," he called to Kogane as they passed.

"Will do!" Kogane chirped.

They were almost back to their seats when a new voice called them. "Hey, great job up there!"

Turning, Kenji recognized the two girls who had been eyeing them as they'd stood in line for water. The girl who'd spoken had dark hair and wide, pretty eyes. Her Japanese, while accented, flowed easily.

"Thanks," he said, offering her a friendly grin, as he sat down with his teammates again. 

He kept one ear trained to her, even as he turned back around. The girl was still speaking to her friend, somewhat loudly to be heard over Kogane's love song (the bastard was killing it, Kenji would admit begrudgingly). She was speaking in English, which probably contributed to the volume. She probably figured even if anyone around her could hear the words, they'd have a hard time understanding. 

Kenji understood. 

He leaned towards Kamasaki, slipping an arm over the back of his chair, turning his hat around so the brim wouldn't interfere with his quest to get closer. "Those two girls? They're talking about us."

" _Huh?_ "

This time it was Kenji's hand clamping down on the back of Kamasaki's head, holding him still. "Don't turn around, geez! Don't you know how to eavesdrop properly?"

"I ain't in the _habit_ of eavesdropping," Kamasaki bitched. "'Cause unlike _some people_ I wasn't raised in a goddamn _barn_."

"Could've fooled me. Anyway shut up," Kenji hissed. "I'm trying to hear." He felt Kamasaki go still under his hand and knew he was listening too, even if he couldn't understand. Or maybe he was just listening to Kenji listen.

The girl who had spoken to them seemed to be the more confident of the two. She was offering to approach him and Kamasaki again, coaxing her friend to be bold. "Which one do you like?" Kenji heard her ask.

Her friend took so long to answer that Kenji thought he'd missed it. "The one with the brown hair," she admitted finally.

Kenji grinned. "Jackpot," he breathed.

" _What?_ " Kamasaki demanded. Kenji shushed him. 

"You should give him your LINE," the first girl was encouraging her. "He's cute."

Kenji leaned in until his mouth was practically brushing Kamasaki's ear. All this ego boosting was getting to his head. "They said I'm the cute one. That one girl wants to get my LINE info."

"Is that so," Kamasaki said. 

"Scout's honor." One of these days, Kenji was going to do something stupid and give into the temptation of resting his forehead on Kamasaki's temple or something. It would make holding this position a lot easier.

Kamasaki hummed. "So how come you're not over there, talking to them?" He turned his head as he said it. Kenji blinked, abruptly forced to acknowledge their proximity. They were practically nose-to-nose. He could feel Kamasaki breathing. He could count his eyelashes. "Why're you still sitting here with _me?"_

Slowly, Kenji oozed back into his own space. _Holyyy hell._ Kamasaki had meant it as a challenge, had meant to motivate Kenji to carpe the fucking diem or whatever but Kenji's gut was suddenly feeling hot and squirmy. For a split second, his garbage brain had thought Kamasaki had meant... _Well._

Okay, this was fine. Kenji had it bad. He could admit that. He didn't usually but he _could._

For lack of anything else to do, Kenji reached for his water glass and took a sip. He was acting weird and he knew it. Worse, he knew Kamasaki knew it. "I'm getting another drink," he muttered. 

As he turned around he found himself, for the second time tonight, locking eyes with fucking Oikawa. _You can't get rid of this guy_ , Kenji thought vindictively, irritated with himself for the way he had paused, half out of his seat. _He's like glitter_. To make matters worse, Oikawa was probably just minding his own damn business, just taking his drinks back to his table with his friends—

Then Oikawa's eyes slid off Kenji, slippery as an oil slick, and found a spot over his right shoulder. He blew a kiss. 

Kenji twisted his head around in time to see Sakunami flinch. The poor kid was clearly struggling to keep his expression neutral but Kenji could see him suddenly shrinking inside himself, feeling uncomfortable. Feeling small.

Something roiling and ugly was rearing its head as Kenji pushed himself out of his chair. "I'm about to start something," he muttered just for fair warning. He was distantly aware of Kamasaki calling for him. He was sure his face looked like murder. Head high, spine straight, he made off through the crowd after Oikawa. 

Kenji found him already back at his booth with his teammates, setting the drinks in his hands down on the table. Everyone looked up as he approached, striding towards them like a man on a mission. Oikawa's stupid smirk broke across his face.

"Can I _help you_ , Date Te—"

That was as far as he got because Kenji grabbed him by the collar and kissed him. 

The reaction was immediate. Sounds of surprise rose up from their audience, gasps and the scraping of chairs along the floor. People may have been backing up. His tongue was in Oikawa's mouth for the briefest second and then two hands were on his chest, shoving him viciously back. 

Kenji stumbled one step and hit the solid wall of Kamasaki directly behind him. Takano was there too, just behind Kamasaki though Kenji felt more than saw his presence. Oikawa was staring at him like a wild animal, unblinking, eyes unnervingly wide, showing all his teeth. Without breaking eye contact with Kenji, he licked his lips.

"Come on then," he rasped.

 _Can't argue with that._ Kenji took half a step forward but Kamasaki and Takano's hands caught him, holding him back. 

"Enough!" Iwaizumi, Aoba Johsai's #4 appeared from somewhere, grabbing Oikawa by the scruff of his shirt with one hand, hauling him backwards. " _What_ is going on here?!"

Kenji and Oikawa stared at each. For a long tense moment neither of them spoke.

"Starting drama in club bathrooms is the wrong kind of gay, Oikawa," Kenji said finally. His voice was smooth and cold. It wasn't the most devastating line he'd ever delivered, but it worked. It kept Sakunami out of it. Everyone was already turning to Oikawa, fully accepting that whatever this was, it was his fault.

" _Hey_ ," another voice snapped. Everyone turned again. A new guy, a _huge_ guy was standing there, arms folded over his chest. His whole demeanor just screamed " _club bouncer._ " His thick eyebrows drew low as he stared them all down. "Listen, people. I don't got a problem with whatever two men might wanna get up to—" and here he gestured between Kenji and Oikawa.

( _Barf,_ Kenji thought.)

"—but you can't do it _here_ , you hear me?"

"Sir, this is all a misunderstanding," Oikawa started to say, smooth as ever.

The bouncer spoke right over him. "We're not _that kind of place_ , understand?"

"Of course sir," Oikawa tried.

"I'm gonna need the two of you to leave."

He was met with mutinous silence. 

Kenji moved first, yanking himself away from Kamasaki and Takano, eyes hooded, face impassive. As he turned away he heard Oikawa's infuriatingly cheerful voice behind him, spinning some bullshit he couldn't stand to listen to. Kamasaki caught up with him as he walked, Takano trailing behind. 

"Mind telling me what the hell _that_ was?" Kamasaki asked.

"He had it coming," Kenji muttered. 

Moniwa stood as he approached their group again. "Futakuchi...?"

"Yeah, so. I'm getting thrown out for the night." Kenji offered him a careless smile. "Sorry for making a scene, Moniwa-san." Reaching for his jacket, he pulled his wallet out of his pocket and counted out some money. Everyone was just kind of watching him and it sucked. He didn't dare look at Sakunami. He muttered, " _see you at home_ " to Takano and then he was walking out the door.

The entrance to the Red Room was located on a quiet side street, just off the main road. It was quiet enough that the group of smokers outside the door were able to stand in the center of the road without fear of retribution. He looked around, trying to get his bearings, trying to decide what to do before Oikawa inevitably walked out the front door too.

"Futakuchi!" The familiar voice almost startled him. Turning, he saw Kamasaki coming after him. 

"Oh." Kenji resolutely didn't fidget. "It's you."

"Don't act so happy to see me, damn." 

That was as far as he got before Oikawa and Iwaizumi burst out of the club behind him, Iwaizumi still dragging Oikawa by the scruff. He hauled Oikawa straight up the street, not even pausing to look at who might be around them. Oikawa's voice had its usual whiny lilt, but as they passed by, Kenji caught the words " _you goddamn piece of shit_ " in Iwaizumi's furious growl.

Kenji and Kamasaki watched them go in silence.

"Well," Kenji commented after a moment. "I guess the trash can't take _itself_ out."

Kamasaki snorted. His hand found the base of Kenji's neck. "Come on. Moniwa suggested I walk you around the block."

"What, am I a _dog_ now?"

"See, I'm not gonna make a comment about obedience training, 'cause I got told to be nice to you." He smirked. "Now heel." 

Kenji scowled but it was a token resistance at best, falling into step with Kamasaki as he went. The night was cool and the air felt good against his skin after the sweaty press of the club. He could still smell a little of that sweat on Kamasaki, where it had mixed with his cologne. Kenji definitely liked the results.

 _I can't believe that was my first kiss in fucking months,_ he thought abruptly. A heavy sigh escaped him. Kamasaki looked at him sidelong but didn't say anything. 

Even if he'd known it could happen, getting thrown out of somewhere didn't feel great. At least he'd taken Oikawa out with him. And at least Kenji had called him out in front of all his friends. Iwaizumi sure seemed ready to believe that whatever had happened, it was all Oikawa's fault. _God,_ that had to burn. By all accounts, Iwaizumi was Oikawa's best friend. If Takano ever seriously called _him_ a piece of shit, Kenji would probably just crawl into a hole and die.

The Red Room was near the river district and the water had come into view before Kamasaki spoke again. "So." He cleared his throat. "What the hell _was_ that? Since when does Oikawa make eyes at _Sakunami_ of all people?"

Kenji blinked. "You saw that?" he asked, surprise making him honest.

"The only reason I saw it is 'cause you saw it. It looked like you were expecting it, if I'm bein' honest." He watched Kenji watch him. His eyes fell to where Kenji was chewing his lip. "Mind telling me what the fuck?"

Kenji stared at him a little longer, brow furrowed, thinking. "Sakunami won't tell me what happened," he admitted finally, turning to watch the road again. "At the last place, he ran into Oikawa in the bathroom and Oikawa said something to him but I only caught the end of it. I just know he looked pretty upset. And then when Oikawa saw him just now, it looked like he was rubbing it in. Whatever 'it' was, I guess." In his peripheral he saw Kamasaki looking at him, assessing. Kenji rubbed at the back of his ball cap, taking it off his head, smoothing his hair down, replacing it. He had no reason to feel self-conscious. "You uh, shouldn't tell Sakunami I told you that," he said quietly. "He's really embarrassed about it." 

"Alright," Kamasaki agreed easily. "I can keep my mouth shut."

There were benches lining the walkway along the river. Kamasaki led him to one that sat almost hidden by a low concrete wall, created by the way the main path started to slope up into a hill. Plopping himself down, he let out a gutsy sigh. Kenji sat beside him, propping his elbows on his knees. Silence fell over them again, but it was a comfortable one. Like Takano, Kamasaki didn't seem to need him to talk. 

"Here," Kamasaki said. Looking over, Kenji was surprised to see he had produced a hip flask from inside his jacket pocket. 

"Damn." Kenji took it from him. "How'd you get this past the doorman?" 

"Big group of guys, lots of people to check. They get sloppy. And this jacket's pocket is pretty hidden." Kamasaki opened his jacket to show Kenji the puffy lining. "See?" 

Kenji reached over and ran his fingers along the thick fabric, reveling in the way it was still warm from Kamasaki's body. "That's pretty clever," he admitted. "Didn't think you had it in you." 

"Ha," Kamasaki said easily. It was a testament to how far they'd come in three years that he looked comfortable rather than annoyed. "One of these days you'll admit you appreciate me."

"Nah." Kenji unscrewed the flask's cap and took a swig. It burned going down. Smacking his lips, he tried to place the flavor. "What is that?" He handed the flask back.

"Coconut rum." Kamasaki took a swig of his own. 

"Really?"

"Yup." Kenji was treated to a leery grin. "All we need's some Jaeger and whatever the hell 'loathing' is and we got ourselves a fun time."

So much had happened since Kenji had been looking over the menu at the Cobalt that it took a minute for the penny to drop. Then he snorted. "Right. 'Hate sex.'" He looked back out over the water. "By definition, I don't think hate sex is a fun time." 

"One way to find out," Kamasaki said. The smirk in his voice made Kenji's stomach flip. But when he glanced over, Kamasaki was watching the water too. 

Kenji thought about how much he hated Oikawa and pricks like him. He thought about how much he really, _really_ didn't hate Kamasaki. "Kissing Oikawa definitely wasn't a fun time," he commented. "Can't imagine sex with him would be any better." God, but Kenji had never _once_ understood the appeal there.

Kamasaki snorted. "Not enough alcohol in all of Japan for that," he agreed. He took another drink. 

"I can't believe that I finally get to check off my goal of getting thrown out of club for being too gay and it wasn't even someone I wanted to be gay _with_." 

"That was a _goal?_ " Kamasaki eyed him incredulously. 

Kenji shrugged. When he said " _being gay"_ he'd imagined it more along the lines of " _having sex"_ but here they were now. "It wasn't a serious goal," he deflected.

"You're a piece of work, you know that?"

"That's what they tell me." Then he frowned at himself. That had sounded way more tired than he'd meant it to. He held out his hand for the flask again in an attempt to cover it. Kamasaki handed it over.

"...So," he said once Kenji had had his drink. "Does that mean there's someone you _want_ to be gay with?" 

Kenji looked at him sharply and found Kamasaki was already looking back. The moment stretched.

Kenji let his eyes drop to Kamasaki's mouth. His lips were probably chapped. He always bit at them. Kenji couldn't remember how many dreams he'd had about kissing them because honestly, at some point he'd stop keeping track. Kenji looked Kamasaki in the eye again and saw Kamasaki staring.

"Yeah," Kenji said flatly. He turned away. Heat was prickling the back of his neck.

Kamasaki let out a breath. There was the sound of movement as he stretched his arms along the back of the bench. One of them would have been brushing Kenji's shoulders if Kenji were to lean back. He stayed forward, peeking at Kamasaki through the curtain of his hair. "You know," Kamasaki began. "Moniwa says you're bad at the things you actually care about."

Kenji's stomach promptly folded in on itself. "Moniwa-san's a fucking busybody," he muttered. 

Kamasaki cuffed him on the back of the head. "Don't talk about your captain that way." But there was something friendly in his tone. "Wanna know what I think?"

" _That_ sounds ominous." But despite himself, he really did. He glanced at Kamasaki out of the corner of his eye. "...Yeah," he admitted.

"You are pretty fucking bad at emotions—Let me finish," Kamasaki growled, seeing Kenji open his mouth. "You're bad at emotions but you're not a bad _guy_. I mean yeah, you're a pain in the ass, but we're still considering you for captain next year, ain't we? And sure, it's hilarious that you physically can't call your own best friend 'Taka' but you still _gave_ him a nickname."

"I could call him 'Taka,'" Kenji muttered.

Kamasaki laughed. "You called him that as a joke once and the two of you nearly threw up. You said it made you feel like his _mom_."

"It _did_."

"Look, my point is, you know how to take care of your own. You think Sakunami's ever gonna doubt you have his back? You think _Oikawa's_ ever gonna forget it?"

Kenji couldn't take it. He couldn't handle Kamasaki _praising_ him. He ducked his head and shuffled at his ball cap, pushing it lower over his face. _What the fuck._ Why did he feel so weirdly exposed? He was a man who had once been dared to spend an entire co-ed party in nothing but his boxers and socks. "You kiss-up," he muttered, grateful for the way his bangs hid his face. Even by the river, it suddenly felt way too hot.

"Way I figure it," Kamasaki continued, "you're like a cat. If you like someone you act like it's a coincidence you're always hanging around them."

"Could be worse," Kenji returned, attempting to regain some equilibrium. "I could be knocking things off the table."

"Stick throwing papers at me," Kamasaki deadpanned. "I don't need you breaking anything."

 _Busted._ "...How big of a tsundere will I sound like if I say I don't throw papers at you because I want your attention?"

"Pretty fuckin' big." The grin was evident in Kamasaki's voice. "Hey, Futakuchi. Hey." The bastard was still watching him. His eyes were almost soft.

Kenji looked away. His face was still too hot. "What?"

"Did you tongue kiss him?"

" _What?_ "

"Oikawa. Did you tongue kiss him?"

"Wh—what kind of question is _that?_ " he demanded. "What, you wanna kiss me too or something?" 

"Yeah," Kamasaki simply. "I do."

Kenji inhaled sharply. "Fucking animal." And because he had to regain the upper hand somehow, Kenji leaned in and kissed him. 

The slightest five o' clock shadow bit into his skin. Kamasaki caught his chin between his thumb and forefinger to hold him still. Kenji shifted his weight onto his hands, pressing forward against Kamasaki's mouth, and then they were kissing in earnest. Adrenaline was dumping itself through Kenji's whole body. The way Kamasaki kissed was somehow both dirty and genuine and Kenji found he loved it. Kenji kissed him back like he'd wanted to for almost three years. _Finally,_ his mind breathed as Kamasaki licked into his mouth. _Fucking finally._ He shifted again and his hand found Kamasaki's upper thigh, digging in with the tips of his fingers.

Kamasaki huffed against his mouth. Kenji could feel him grin. He pulled back the merest half-centimeter to mutter, "You're a goddamn _tease_ , you know that?" 

Kenji grinned back, squeezing his thigh. "Am I?"

He felt his blood spike in response to the look Kamasaki gave him. Then Kamasaki was leaning back out of his space with a sigh. "We probably shouldn't continue this here," he admitted.

"Public indecency charges not your idea of a first date, Kamasaki-san?" It came out almost steady, considering that his heart was stuttering in his mouth. He leaned in again.

Kamasaki kissed him once, twice before he pulled away. "Come on, get up." He got to his feet. "We each of us have a fully functional apartment." 

The train back to campus was infuriatingly long. Kenji compensated for this by standing directly in front of the seat Kamasaki had taken, holding onto the handrail overhead despite there being plenty of space to sit. It had the benefit of demonstrating just how far his shirt could ride up when he stretched. And _that_ had the benefit for getting Kamasaki to give him maybe one of the obvious once-over Kenji had ever received in his life. He looked perfectly at ease too, arms spread over the back of the seating, ankle propped over the opposite knee. Kenji was so into him it was insane.

"Nice crop-top," Kamasaki said. He kept his voice quiet, probably out of respect for the posted reminders to not disturb the other passengers, but his quiet voice seemed to have an unavoidable growl to it.

"It's not a _crop-top_ ," Kenji hissed, a knee-jerk response to their usual bickering.

Kamasaki glanced left and then right. No one seemed to be minding them. He reached out and tugged the hem of Kenji's shirt with his thumb and index finger. The knuckles of his hand brushed Kenji's bare stomach. Kenji struggled not to shiver. "Coulda fooled me."

Kenji inhaled, annoyance and something else. He glared down at Kamasaki and Kamasaki stared back up at him with an infuriating little smile. 

The moment stretched too long. _There are other people on this train,_ Kenji was forced to remind himself.

Somehow, they made it back to Kamasaki's apartment in one piece. He was in one of the nicer residence buildings so unlike Kenji and Takano, he and his roommate had separate bedrooms. 

"I'm only saying, I've never had sex in a bunk bed," Kenji was saying as they went up the stairs. "How wrong could it go?"

Kamasaki snorted dismissively. "You got the top bunk." Kenji was tempted to ask why he remembered that. "If you and I were in there at the same time the whole thing would come down." Their shoulders bumped as they shoved each other out of the stairwell.

Kenji squeezed himself past an impossibly large bicep. "Especially with your bulk," he muttered, rubbing at his own arm.

Kamasaki smirked. "So you _do_ think I'm bulking."

"When will you accept I don't think about you?" Kenji was trying not to dwell on the fact that he was leading the way to Kamasaki's apartment. The chuckle that earned him told him he was not exactly playing it cool. 

"When you do something to convince me, you dumb brat." There was a jingle as Kamasaki dug for his keys. "Uh, my roommate's probably trying to sleep by now," he added. "We're gonna have to be quiet."

 _No promises,_ Kenji didn't say because even he knew to be a respectful houseguest. 

There was a weird little shuffle inside the door as they got their shoes off and jackets into the hallway closet. They came to a halt for a moment, just standing in the genkan in their socks. Then Kenji reached for his trademark smirk. "Well? You've got home court advantage, Kamasaki-san." 

"You talk a lot." Kamasaki's hands fisted in his collar and then they were kissing again.

Kenji had been aware, long before he had liked Kamasaki, that he had wanted his attention. Kenji liked attention in general and it was just more satisfying coming from some people than others. Even before they had become friends, even before they had gotten _along_ , Kamasaki's attention had always been extremely gratifying. Now, as Kamasaki's fingers came to grip hard at the back of his neck, forcing the tilt of his head, Kenji felt about two seconds away from purring. He had every single ounce of this man's focus. Kenji was so greedy for that, he could hardly stand it. 

Their hands explored. At some point Kenji's arms wound themselves around Kamasaki's neck and Kamasaki's hands found his waist. Kenji grinned as he felt them sliding lower. "Up," Kamasaki said, throwing off whatever flippant comment Kenji was about to make. He drew his head back.

" _What_?" He remembered just in time to keep his volume to a hiss.

"I'm picking you up, come on. Unless you wanna stand here all night?"

Kenji squinted. Sure, he knew that Kamasaki was a good 15 kg bigger but Kenji was not "little" by any definition. If Kamasaki thought he could show off, Kenji was gonna make him work for it. 

Kamasaki grunted as Kenji jumped on him, wrapping himself around him like an octopus. His hands flew to the backs of Kenji's thighs and Kenji was jostled as Kamasaki got a better grip. And then Kamasaki was holding him up, actually holding him up. No one had held Kenji up in over a decade. 

Kenji was staring.

" _Holy shit,_ " he breathed and Kamasaki laughed. 

He was carried to the bedroom, doing his best to impede their progress by nibbling on Kamasaki's ear. It earned him a nice series of growls. He loved the way he could feel Kamasaki's body tensing beneath him as Kenji used his tongue. 

He let out an indignant gasp as Kamasaki dumped him on the bed. Kamasaki disappeared for a moment to turn on the bedside light, but he was back before Kenji could finish conjuring up some snide comment about hospitality. Kamasaki pressed a knee between his legs, one foot still planted on the floor. It made it hard to think.

"Okay, listen up," Kamasaki ordered.

"This gonna be some kind of vice-captain speech?" Kenji was smirking but he still felt a little breathless, fingers curling loosely up around his head. Kamasaki was definitely checking him out again, getting distracted by the new angle. That was okay. Kenji was checking him out too. He lifted his hips to rub against Kamasaki's thigh and got a frown in response, Kamasaki's thigh pressing a little harder in retaliation.

"I said _listen up_."

"I'm listening!" He was kind of laughing though. " _God._ "

Kamasaki was kind of laughing too so Kenji took the win. "I'm fine with us jumpin' right into it but I don't want this to be a casual thing."

"Do you not do casual?" Kenji propped himself up on his elbows as he said it. He was certain he'd seen Kamasaki fooling around with people before. Not that there had been anyone recently, come to think of it.

_...Huh._

Kamasaki levelled him with a _look._ "I don't wanna do casual with you."

"Oh." Kenji breathed it out before he could stop himself. He blinked, and then cleared his throat, oddly relieved. "...Wanna get breakfast tomorrow?" 

" _Yeah_." And Kamasaki leaned down to kiss him again. 

He was being pressed down into the rumpled sheets in earnest now, their legs tangling together as Kamasaki forced him to take his full weight. "You really are a tease, you know that?" he said, almost conversationally as Kenji attempted to push up against him. "Do you have _any idea_ how goddamn sensitive my ears are? And you just kept putting your fucking mouth on them to talk to me—"

Kenji surged up, aiming to bite his earlobe. Kamasaki jerked back and Kenji used the movement to his advantage, rolling Kamasaki back on top of his own pillows, half wedged against the headboard.

" _Hey!_ " he hissed.

" _Ha_ _!_ " Kenji hissed back. He was smiling really hard. Damn, was he _happy_ _?_ Probably. "You can't give me ammunition like that and expect me not to use it, Kamachi-san _._ " His grin turned wild as he stared down at Kamasaki, staring hard, showing all his teeth.

Kamasaki stared back, his cheeks slowly staining red. His chest rose and fell heavily as he managed, "I uh. Guess I’ll let you."

"'Let me,'" Kenji mocked. He leaned down to kiss up his neck to his jaw, finally testing his teeth on his earlobe. It got him a breathy " _hahhh._ " Jackpot. Kamasaki's hands were on his waist, blunt nails digging into the skin beneath his shirt. Kenji was blatantly grinding on his thigh now.

They stayed clothed the entire time, a messy combination of impatience and the need for quiet. Kamasaki’s hand found the front of Kenji’s jeans, closing on his zipper as the other hand stayed on his waist to steady him.

“Any objections to my hand on your dick?” Kamasaki asked, smirking up at him even as his eyes watched Kenji’s reaction carefully.

“None at all.” Kenji prided himself on sounding steady, even with the blood pounding in his ears. His body was running hot. He sucked in a breath at the sound of his zipper coming down. Kamasaki heard it but that meant Kenji got to watch him smile about it, eyes still glued to Kenji’s waist. His eyelashes fanned against his cheek and Kenji struggled not to think all sorts of sappy adjectives about them.

Any words he could have come up with were promptly incinerated when Kamasaki said, “Nice underwear.”

“Wha—?” Kenji dropped his forehead down by Kamasaki’s temple to look. Oh hell, it was the purple pair. He’d forgotten about that. “Just for that, I expect you to be packing heat, Kamasaki-san,” he returned airily, pressing a palm hard to the front of Kamasaki’s jeans. He appreciated the little growl that got him as he took to Kamasaki’s fly with both hands, enjoying the feeling of Kamasaki’s hands back on his waist, gripping to hold him up. “Ha!” he breathed. “Gray!”

“What’s wrong with _gray?_ ” 

“It’s boring,” Kenji said. As though he could ever be immune to the sight of Kamasaki in his underwear. Kenji kissed him again, framing his face with his forearms. His open fly let him rut more directly against Kamasaki’s hip and he took advantage of this fact shamelessly. Grinding was underrated. Being pressed against Kamasaki’s body felt _fantastic._

This was probably the reason for his bratty whine when Kamasaki said, “Pants off, let’s go.” 

" _Fi_ _ne."_

Kamasaki snickered in his ear. “What, less pants was not the direction you were hoping this would go?”

“You make fun of all your partners like this?” Kenji muttered, rolling off him to shuck his jeans off. Kamasaki took the moment to do the same. 

“Nah, you’re just special, sweetheart.” Kamasaki grinned and reached for him again and Kenji returned to straddle him eagerly. He watched Kamasaki assess him for a moment. “I _can_ be nicer if that’s your style,” he added.

Kenji’s mind was already reeling so hard that Kamasaki being nice to him would probably convince him he was hallucinating. “Maybe next time,” he said before leaning down to bury his face in Kamasaki’s neck. “God,” he muttered. “Why do you always smell so _good?_ ” 

“Is that why you’re always hanging off of me?” Kamasaki laughed. His hands were on Kenji’s ass now. This was a welcome development.

“I don’t hang off you,” Kenji lied. He took a moment to scrape his teeth against Kamasaki’s neck. He grinned against the skin when he felt Kamasaki jerk, sensitive. “Maybe I just deserve the attention, ever think of that?”

“Yeah I do,” Kamasaki admitted quietly. “God help me.” Kenji blinked into his neck, surprised and flustered.

Then Kamasaki slipped his hand into Kenji’s boxers and Kenji exhaled harshly, completely unprepared. He was getting pressure from two fronts now, Kamasaki’s leg and his palm. It was inelegant but it was strong, steady friction, and Kenji had to press his forehead into the bed by Kamasaki’s temple and rock into it. Kamasaki’s teeth found Kenji’s bare shoulder and with Kamasaki sucking a bruise into his skin, Kenji was absolutely finished.

Kamasaki didn't look anything other than completely self-satisfied when Kenji caught his breath even afterwards, even though the angle had to have been awkward on his wrist.

“You turn,” Kenji murmured, feeling loose and relaxed in the wake of his orgasm. He nudged Kamasaki into a new position, lounging properly along the bed. “Come on, come on, I wanna touch you, let’s go.”

“Bossy ain't ya?” Kamasaki murmured around a crooked smile. He helped Kenji reposition them so Kenji could lie in the V of his legs. 

He looked up at Kamasaki and grinned as he pushed his shirt up his chest, spreading greedy hands over his torso. “Fucking _finally,_ ” he muttered. Kamasaki’s soft laugh made him smile in response. He wriggled around a little, putting all his weight onto one forearm so he could get Kamasaki through the flap in his boxers and suck kisses under his ribs at the same time. Kenji worked his way up Kamasaki’s body, making a bet with himself about how many hickeys he could leave before Kamasaki came. He didn’t get nearly far enough before Kamasaki was jerking up, arching off the bed to make a mess of Kenji’s hand. 

He let Kamasaki take a moment to catch his breath. When he saw focus come back into those dark eyes, he tipped his chin and raised his eyebrows, a parody of greeting. "Hey." 

"Hey," Kamasaki laughed.

He held up his soiled hand. "Tissues?"

"Yeah, one sec." And Kamasaki disappeared into the bathroom to get a washcloth. He cleaned Kenji's hand for him, pulling the cloth over him with long, clean strokes. It was practical, sure, but it also felt weirdly nice to have someone take care of the clean up for him. 

"Hm," he murmured. For no reason at all, he reached up to grip the back of Kamasaki's neck and kiss him. He could not have explained aloud how comfortable he felt in Kamasaki's personal space, or how much he liked that comfort.

"'Hm' what?" Kamasaki looked as loose and relaxed as Kenji felt. He folded the filthy side of the washcloth in on itself and set it on the nightstand before flopping down beside Kenji. His hair, normally messy to begin with, was sweat-damp and mussed. Kenji wanted to yank it. He held off for the moment: Kamasaki was already looking at him.

He pushed up Kamasaki's shirt. "I only got three hickeys on you." He pressed on one of them as he spoke, enjoying the slight hiss that got him, as well as the sight of goosebumps over Kamasaki's entire chest. 

"Three not enough?" Kamasaki tangled their fingers together and bent Kenji's wrist back a little, to keep him from touching further probably. It also served as a little reminder of who was stronger here and it was more of a turn on than Kenji cared to admit. 

"It's so important to have goals in life," he said airily, ignoring his embarrassing reaction to Kamasaki's strength against his wrist. His body felt hot all over again.

Kamasaki's usual snort was softer somehow. "Fuckin' weird goal to have." Kenji could recognize the underlying affection there. It made him want to squirm. Kamasaki released his hand and pulled his shirt back down. Sitting up again, he yawned and stretched his back. "We should get you changed. You wanna sleep here?"

Kenji rolled onto his back, fighting a yawn of his own. "It would make it easier to get breakfast tomorrow." 

Tangled in the bedding, someone’s phone screen lit up, somehow having gotten buried under the top-sheet. Kenji's hand flopped around for it and realized it was Kamasaki's. He had several missed texts. The most recent was from Sasaya.

From: Sasaya Takehito  
_I'm assuming cuz you keep not answering, you guys are either fucking or killing each other_

Grinning, Kenji dug around for his own phone. 

"Who was that?" Kamasaki asked, in the process of going through the drawers of his standing wardrobe. He was pulling out what appeared to be his pajamas.

"Sasaya. He wants to know if we're dead."

Kamasaki snorted. "Typical. I got some clothes you can sleep in."

"Are we gonna both fit on the bed?"

"I got a futon stored, I'll get it out. Got an extra toothbrush too." 

A distant part of Kenji couldn't process how, well, _nice_ this all felt. He'd always imagined that if they ever actually fucked, Kamasaki would throw him out afterwards on principle. Instead he was going to be sleeping in Kamasaki's clothes and using his guest toothbrush. They were going on a _date._ Kenji didn't do dates, usually. It was even that he tried to give off uncommitted vibes; it was just that he seemed too flippant and casual and people kept assuming. Maybe Kamasaki knew him too well to be put off. Kenji didn't know how to process that. 

_Holy shit, I think we're actually_ _friends._

Okay, it was definitely too late at night for an exceedingly stupid crisis about the possibility that his crush liked him as a person. To distract himself, he reached for his phone instead. Checking his messages, he saw he had missed texts from about half the team. He opened Takano's first.

From: (눈_눈)  
_are you committing violence_  
_are you coming home tonight_

The second one had been sent about an hour after the first. Kenji grinned.

From: Kenji  
_nah, i'm with kamasaki tonight_ _  
_ _see you tomorrow_

To Sasaya, Kenji sent, “ _I_ _’ll give you a hint: we didn’t kill each other._ ” He had just resolved to ignore the rest of the team until tomorrow, when the preview of Sakunami's message caught his eye. Heart twisting with something he couldn't name, he opened it. 

From: Sakunami  
_You really are a good person, Futakuchi-san_  
_I hope you know that_  
_Thank you_

His face felt too hot. He actually felt _warm and fuzzy_ inside. It was probably just the post-coital bliss making him weak. There was no other explanation for it. 

A t-shirt hit him in the face. It smelled like Kamasaki and he resisted the urge to bury his nose in it. "Put that on," the man in question ordered. Kenji obeyed, still feeling out of sorts. He had a date. His kouhai respected him. What was _going on_? He could probably be polite to _Oikawa_ right now. A breathy laugh escaped him before he could stop it. 

_I should send that prick a thank-you card._

It was a damn weird night.

**Author's Note:**

> 1\. If you need a visual for the style of music of the live band playing in the gay bar, picture something like [Babymetal. ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIKqgE4BwAY)  
> 2\. I'm picturing Kamasaki and Kenji's karaoke performance as having a similar energy to[ this Gym Class Heroes/Patrick Stump performance.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tcmi7OWfV5Q)  
> Thanks for reading! Comments and kudos are <3


End file.
